Sugar Rises on Weather Concerns, Cotton Falls

November 24th, 2010 | Vladimir Vyun

Sugar rose on concerns that adverse weather in India, the second largest producer in the world, would curb supplies. Sugar production in the state of Maharashtra, India’s biggest producer of refined sugar, declined 29 percent from October 1st to November 20th, compared to the same period in the previous year, as heavy rainfall slowed the harvest. Sugar declined previously on concerns about sovereign-debt of European countries and conflict between North and South Korea. March delivery for raw sugar rose $0.0083 (3.1 percent) to $0.2733 per pound as of 14:00 on ICE.

Cotton dropped to the lowest level in a month as China tightened rules for bank credit in order to make it hard to speculate on agricultural markets and as the dollar rose. China attempts to prevent hoarding of products and artificial inflation of prices. The dollar surged after North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire, spurring demand for the US currency as a safe haven. March delivery for cotton fell 0.06 (5.1 percent) to $1.1179 per pound by 14:44 on ICE.
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